QUETTA: A powerful remote-controlled car-bomb targeting a bus full of pilgrims on Thursday claimed the lives of 13 people, including a cop, and injured 30 others here in the Hazar Gunji area.

Hospital sources feared that the death toll may rise, as many of the injured are in a critical condition.

Emergency was declared in all the hospitals of the provincial metropolis.

Police officials said a passenger bus, escorted by a police van, carrying 40 pilgrims, was on its way from the Pak-Iran border at Taftan to Quetta. When the bus reached the Hazar Gunji area in the outskirts of the provincial capital, it was targeted by a remote-controlled car-bomb.

“In view of the evidence, it seems that the explosives were fixed to a car which went off as the bus approached the site,” said CCPO Quetta Mir Zubair while talking to media persons at the spot of the incident.

The blast was so powerful that the bus turned into an unrecognizable wreck of metal and all 40 pilgrims and four policemen --in a patrolling vehicle escorting the passenger bus-- were hit.

Reports suggested that unidentified terrorists had parked a car loaded with explosives at Hazar Gunji. As the bus carrying the pilgrims approached the site at around 6:00pm, the explosive device went off with a big bang.

People were seen running here and there in search of safety, eye witnesses said. “Thirteen people were killed and 30 others were injured in the blast,” hospital sources said.

The bodies of the deceased were removed to the morgue of Bolan Medical Complex Hospital for identification. Some of the deceased were identified as Police Constable Fateh Muhammad, Bostan Ali, Ali Husain, Sarwar Ali, Zangal Khan, Ali Zaman, Ghulam Raza, Saleh Muhammad and Qurban Ali.

The names of other deceased are yet to be confirmed.

The injured were shifted to the BMC Hospital and later eight of them were shifted to the Civil Hospital, Quetta. Subsequently, seven seriously injured were shifted to the CMH.

Moving scenes were witnessed on the spot and in hospitals, when dozens of relatives of the deceased and injured thronged there.

The police and Frontier Corps (FC) reached the spot and cordoned off the area as officials of the bomb disposal squad examined the type of explosive material. “Over 40-50kgs of explosive material was used to target the pilgrims bus,” said officials of the bomb disposal squad.

The politico-religious parties — Hazara Democratic Party (HDP), Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), and others — strongly condemned the incident and demanded that the government provide security to the general public or else step down. The HDP gave a shutter down strike call for today (Friday) to condemn the target killings and bomb blasts in Quetta.

APP adds: Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf condemned the Quetta blast and directed the authorities concerned to provide the best medical facilities to the injured.

Separately, unidentified armed men gunned down a man in the Saryab area of the provincial capital.

According to the police, the victim, identified as Soomro, was on his way home when armed assailants riding a motorbike opened fire at him in the Custom area, killing him on the spot.

Now Rahman malik will say INDIA, RAW, CBI and MOSSAD is behind the killing of people, Ha Ha.. Pak is blaming india for its own problems in Baloochistan, the situation must be clear now to world

tomPakistan

There was lot of violence in Baluchistan before ZIa. Bhutto order military operation in Baluchistan which continued during entire Bhutto rule and thousands of baluch including Baluch leaders were arrested,put in jails in different parts of country. So Baluch unrest was very sever before Zia. But Zia bring all that mess under control and make Baluchistan a peaceful place. Nodoubt Zia did lot of wrong things like hanging sitting PM, curbed political activites, brought afghans to pakistan...

hamidBahrain

Baloch are not Iraqi Kurd, Baloch are pure Pakistanis and they
loved Pakistan and they can die for Pakistan.
I urges, Islamabad to pay attentions to peace loving Baloch
and take action to anti-Pakistan Baloch leaders, but don't
forget there are foreign forces also helping anti-Baloch leaders.
Majority of Baloch are with Pakistan but there are few thousands
Baloch who are brain washed by their so called leadership.
Baloch and Balochistan will always be part of Pakistan.

Taj AhmadPakistan

The growing persecution of the Shias in Pakistan is linked to Islamabad's ruthless anti-Baloch policies.It is aimed at pressuring Iran to return to the chauvinist racist anti-Baloch policies of the Pahlavi era. Unlike the Pahlavi Regimes that financially and militarily helped and cooperated with Pakistan to crush the Balochs in Pakistan and keep Iranian Baluchistan backward, the post-1979/80 Revolution Iran has dissociated with Islamabad's anti-Baloch schemes.

Malek Tauqee (Baloch),Ph.D.USA

These remote controlled bombs are obviously planted by Afghan intelligence agencies, under patronage of foreign intelligence, but I am amazed that our security apparatus and our intelligence agencies are allowing this to happen on a daily basis. If you can not stop such attacks, at least return the favor. If you do nothing, you are only inviting more such attacks.

RazaUSA

It is the complete reluctance of Pakistan Government to control the outlawed Sepah-e Sehaba . It is not difficult thing to figure out who has blown up a bus coming from iran after Ziarats.
You as a News paper has a duty to write for the opressed and should not side with the killers. You did not mention the fact that bus was coming after Ziarats, in this way you are not helping to expose these killers but hiding their crimes.
Sibte
Canada

Sibte SyedCanada

These bomb blast are the direct outcome of Zia's policy to spread & poison the mind of illiterate people with the believes & narrow minded biased thinking of Alqaida,The worst of all is our army generals & politicians living in protected zone & plundering & living like kings are promoting these barbarian enemies of humanity, plainly blinded to the complete anarchy approaching near day by day.

sincerePakistan

Is our supreme court observing this? they let off so many people on the basis of 'lack of evidence' as they were scared of repurcussions if they don't. Maybe our CJ and SC do some real activism and make some brave decisions, and ask the agencies to provide protection to legal system.